A Thousand Miles
by Pixieblade
Summary: My AU of the end and their lives afterwards. Pt 3 of the Tobacco Road Arc.


Title: **A Thousand Miles**

Series: Saiyuki AU

Rating: T

AN: My own version of the end from Gojyo and Hakki's POV.

"Was he really that great, daddy?"

A thin writhing tendril of smoke flitted across the porch from the open window.

"Yes, he really was." A sad smile played across pale lips as the small red-head pressed back against the dark green linen shirt.

"Don't sugar coat things for the kids, 'Kai, he was an obnoxious brat that ate everything in sight!"

"Gojyo…please, this is Goku we're talking about, he had his reasons for everything that happened."

"Hey Dad," a chubby little hand wrested itself in leather breaches, "What about Sanzo-sama? What happened to him?"

Gojyo reached down and pulled the boy onto the window sill, lightly tapping out the cigarette under his shoe and receiving a mild look of displeasure from the green eyed demon sitting across from him.

"Hmmm…well, they were together for a while. That bakasaru had a time of it after everything was over. It was harder for him, with Sanzo not really remembering what had happened. Well, it was like that for all of us."

He glanced over at Hakkai and gave a mild shiver at the memory of Seiten Taisei Son Goku in his full demonic glory leaning over Sanzo' body, flesh hanging in mangled strips from his claws. Hakkai had tried to stop him and almost been killed for the effort, his human form wasn't strong enough, so they did the only thing they could, Gojyo released his limiters.

It was such a cruel way to end the journey; they'd stopped the resurrection of Gyumaoh, but at the cost of their lives.

***

As the very walls of Houtou Castle came tumbling around the four, over a thousand crazed yokkai surged forward. They were pinned against the crumbling walls, caught between pillars and debris that threatened to come crashing down on their very heads. They'd already sustained several dangerous wounds on their way through the maze-like building: Gojyo had a deep gash across his leg and could barely move, Hakkai had several, well, they might as well be called _holes_ across his chest, received as he was trying to shield Gojyo as he fell, and Sanzo had taken a spear through the gut; as it was, the only one not half-dead was Goku, but that didn't mean he was spared either.

The sight of Sanzo's blood leaking across the stone floor caused Goku's diadem to crack, the sound of the splintering fragments jangling to the floor was unusually loud in the vaulted resurrection chamber. Those few demons left alive after the initial onslaught backed up and scattered as the full fury and power of Seiten Taisei was let loose.

Hakkai had managed to pull himself to his feet, blood splattering unevenly to the flood and called out to him, only to have the cold golden fury of his eyes turned in his direction. As the Monkey King made a rush at them Gojyo had sent out a weak defense with his Shakujo, it did nothing but give him time to drag Hakkai back down beside him behind a half-fallen pillar.

"Gojyo! Please, you mustn't move! I don't have the energy to heal you right now; we have to stop him before he loses it completely!"

Gojyo coughed harshly, the wet gurgling sound speaking louder than anything else the healer might say.

"'Kai, 'Kai," he pulled the brown-haired man down to him, close enough to press a soft kiss to the side of his mouth and whispered, "Sorry, 'Kai, can't leave things like this, it's the only way, don't be mad at me. When this is all over, we'll have that coffee house you wanted, somewhere quiet, alright? So don't die, please, just don't…"

Hakkai just watched in horror as the red-haired half-demon's head slumped lifelessly to his shoulder, the light tinkling of silver cuffs falling unheeded from his bloody hand and scattering across the floor.

His lithe frame folded in upon himself as the seizure caused his body to tremble uncontrollably. It had been a long time since Hakkai had let loose his demonic form and this was not one of those born from pleasure but of absolute despair. He shook his head to clear his thoughts, looking at the pale body wrapped around his feet, the red staining everything and suddenly he couldn't tell who he was looking at, Gojyo or Kanan. In his mind they were close, so very close, friends and lovers and _family,_ and the pain and memories and feelings mixed and warped and twisted until they were one and the same and all he could feel was the cold anger welling up within him, sending the vines shaking in his rage.

He'd turned then. Slowly felt his human consciousness slipping and reverting to the beast that always lay just beneath the surface. As he came around the pillar he let instincts take control, leading him over broken stones and computers, around the unholy mixture of science and religion and magic and then he was there, crouching above the target that had sent Gojyo to his end…Goku.

Part of him remembered the word _friend_, but as he watched the golden demon lick Sanzo's blood from his claws there was a louder part that screamed for vengeance.

He was bounding down the crumbled stones before he could think, his Qi glowing in his hands, pulsing with his anger, tinged a light rose with the blood of his beloved and then there was a shattering white light and he was crouching, Sanzo's gun in his hand, cocked and loaded, pointed straight on as Goku pounded through the rock-dust mist, claws outstretched, running full tilt towards Hakkai, the bloodlust easy to read in his face.

And then there was nothing.

Gojyo's eyes faded to a dull crimson, breathing out wetly, "Hak..kai…" as both green and gold fell to the floor. An ear-splitting scream punctuating the darkness.

That was the last thing he remembered before waking up back in their room at the inn. He wasn't sure sometimes if the whole thing hadn't been a dream or not. He never did figure out who had screamed, or how they were still alive. Enough quiet talks with Hakkai over the following weeks had proven he wasn't crazy, that it all _did_ happen, but none of them knew how or why they were still alive.

Personally, he thought that stupid monkey knew; he was too quiet in the following days, to willing to follow orders and do whatever Sanzo said without question. And he never complained about being hungry--that was the biggest tipoff in his mind.

Hakkai had told him to drop it, that there was something going on between Goku and the monk and that he shouldn't get involved, and for once he had listened. They split up shortly afterwards. Sanzo had started back for Chang'an with Goku on his heels; the pair never once looked back.

They heard a few years later that Sanzo had died and Goku had disappeared, but the monks refused to let them see the body or tell them what had happened, but Hakkai seemed to think it might have been suicide. The trip had made them all look at things they didn't want to deal with.

"What about you 'Kai? What did it make you look at?" he had asked one night.

Hakkai had pushed in closer, cushioning his head on Gojyo's shoulder and breathing deeply of the warm vanilla scent that seemed to follow the red-head wherever he went.

"Sometimes, the past obscures the present; sometimes it makes the _now_ even clearer. When you released my demon side everything seemed to overlay each other. The past and present, I couldn't tell what was real anymore. At the end, I heard you call my name and everything snapped back into high definition for one brief second." He gently drew sharp claws across the other's chest.

"It made me see myself and what was really important to me."

Gojyo made a soft sound in the back of his throat: understanding, acceptance, love; it was all conveyed with that tiny sound that seemed to fill Hakkai with contentment.

A light banging came through the ceiling and Gojyo sighed, running his hand through his hair he had pressed a soft kiss to the demon's dark head and slipped from the bed.

"Those kids, I swear, it's after midnight, what the hell do they think 'bedtime' is anyways?" he growled lightly.

"Ah…let them have a few nights to adjust, they did just lose their families."

"Yeah, well we were both orphans, doesn't mean we were this much trouble!" he grumbled back towards the bed.

"…."

He caught the reflection of dusky vines on moonlit skin and one finely arched eyebrow in the small table mirror and sighed.

"Ok, so maybe we were _worse_. All right, I'll let them be, not like they won't wear out soon enough anyways."

Hakkai didn't answer. He just pulled the sheets down allowing him to ease back in and then slipped farther under their downy confines, wriggling until he got to just the right position.

"Fine, but tomorrow, you're putting them to bed; they don't listen to me at all."

"Of course, 'Dad'."

"Oh shut up, will you."

A faint giggling permeated their room as soft banging followed them into sleep.

***

"Dad?"

"Daddy? You ok?"

The twins were leaning in and looking at him, confusion and a little scared all clear as day on their faces. He smiled and tapped Mao on the nose, causing the little girl to squeal and flail at the offending fingers.

"Hey!?"

"Heh, now you sound like that bakasaru." He caught Hakkai's concerned stare and winked at him suggestively, laughing wholeheartedly at the man as he rolled his eyes and pulled the little girl closer towards him, a mini shield against his lover's perversions.

"Hey Daddy?"

"Hmm?"

"So, did Sanzo-sama and Goku ever meet again?" her big eyed stare made Hakkai's breath catch, she looked just like Goku for a moment.

"Stupid, they'll meet in heaven one day, right Dad?" Kai twisted in Gojyo's hold, nearly toppling off the sill.

All Gojyo could do was smile and look towards the pale purple sunset.

"Yeah, they'll meet in heaven. I'm sure of it."

The little family sat in silence for the rest of the evening, letting the stories and memories wash over them, clinging to each other as the sun slipped below the horizon and the stars peppered the sky.

As the last rays faded Hakkai leaned back and sighed softly, Gojyo's hand resting on his shoulder, their children in their arms, their memories left to guide them towards the future.

Fin.


End file.
